The Chesapeake School Board has selected Dr. Doug Brubaker, current superintendent of Texarkana Independent School District in Texas, to lead Chesapeake Public Schools beginning August 13, 2026.
Brubaker holds a doctorate, Texas Superintendent Certifi cation, and a Virginia Division Superintendent license. He brings 31 years of experience as a teacher, principal, and district leader in systems ranging in size from 7,000 to 57,000 students. He is an award-winning leader, recognized with honors including the Texarkana Area NAACP’s Benjamin Dennis President’s Award and the Alpha Phi Alpha Kappa Gamma Lambda Chapter Community Service Award, both in 2025. He is also a graduate of the Holdsworth Center’s Leadership Collaborative, a highly selective, philanthropically funded leadership development program designed to empower school districts to build their own leadership pipeline and staff retention programs.
Brubaker has spent his career building the kind of operational and academic systems that produce sustained, measurable results, work the Chesapeake School Board says will serve the district well as it continues to build on its own record of strong student and operational performance.
Brubaker will succeed Dr. Jared A. Cotton, who has served eight years as Chesapeake’s superintendent and 34 years in public education.
Since January 2021, Brubaker has led Texarkana Independent School District, a school system where nearly 75 percent of students qualify for the federal free and reduced lunch program. Under his leadership, several of the district’s highest-poverty schools have posted significant, sustained academic gains, a remarkable feat in a state with increasing academic rigor and a stringent accountability system.
Brubaker led the effort to pass and complete a $189 million levy program in Texarkana ISD. Projects were completed on time and $12 million under budget, funding safety and security upgrades, a new Pre-K center, a college- and career-prep elementary school, and a new high school career and technology center. He also led the development of a five-year strategic plan shaped by more than 300 community stakeholders and over 2,000 hours of collaborative planning, a testament to his belief in how essential community engagement and parental involvement are to student success.
During Brubaker’s time in Texarkana, he and his team also delivered a tenfold increase in the number of students graduating high school with an associate’s degree, growth in the district’s virtual academy from 44 students in 2021 to 2,731 in 2026, and an economic development agreement with a local industrial partner that secured $9 million in additional revenue for the district over ten years. A STEM-focused elementary school in the district earned a #3 overall ranking among more than 6,600 elementary schools statewide from U.S. News & World Report in 2025, with a #1 ranking in math proficiency.
Before Texarkana, Brubaker served as superintendent of Fort Smith Public Schools in Arkansas, where he led passage of the district’s fi rst successful levy
proposal in 31 years and oversaw a $121 million capital improvement plan. He has also held leadership roles in Dallas-Fort Worth area school systems: Garland ISD, Mansfield ISD, Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD, and Carroll ISD. He began his career as a fourth-grade teacher in Birdville ISD.
"I am deeply honored and very excited to join the Chesapeake Public Schools family. This district has a proud tradition of excellence and a deep commitment to its students. I look forward to working alongside our dedicated Board, educators, families, and community members to build on this great foundation. Together, we will empower all students to achieve their brightest futures."
“After an extensive national search with assistance from the Virginia School Boards Association, the Board is proud to welcome Dr. Doug Brubaker as the next Superintendent of Chesapeake Public Schools. Dr. Brubaker brings a wealth of experience and a fresh perspective to this role. His proven record of improving student outcomes, engaging families and communities, and leading complex organizations made him an outstanding choice to build upon the strong foundation already established in Chesapeake,” said School Board Chairman Kim Scott.
“We are deeply grateful to Dr. Jared A. Cotton for his exceptional leadership and years of dedicated service to our students, staff, and community. As we look to the future, I am confident that Dr. Brubaker's vision, experience, and passion for public education will help Chesapeake Public Schools continue to thrive and ensure every student has the opportunity to succeed."
Brubaker holds a Ph.D. from the University of North Texas, a master’s degree in elementary education from Texas Christian University, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Kansas, where he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.
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